Suspect Objects Suspect Subjects

SOAS’s Brunei Gallery is pleased to be able to present the exhibition and project Suspect Objects Suspect Subjects as a collection of works which question, highlight and respond to the victimising of Muslim communities in the UK and around the world.
The exhibition addresses themes of government policy and monitoring, controlled identities and the cause and effect on individuals and subsequent impact on mental health. The artworks reflect on this fear and racism as contemporary social factors, political currency, and cultural memes. They target and immerse the viewer to echo the persistent attacks that surround Muslim communities, playing on the navigation of our reality and memory. The use of advertising, installation, painting, sculpture, still and moving images explores the multi-faceted channels used to influence and fuel prejudice. Juxtapositions question the surreal ‘validity’ of suspicion and evoke humour, personal memory and the experiences of duality and difference.

ABOUT THE ARTIST
British-born artist Faisal Hussain creates works that undermine lazy stereotypes and highlight missing histories and overlooked facts. Whether in music, on a t-shirt or a sign outside a kebab shop, the work is often presented in different environments to get closer to all audiences. Using humour and elements of memory, his work questions perceptions about identity, duality, and difference. He lives and works in Birmingham, U.K.